December 12, 2006

Celebrating Sagan is excited to be working with the public on a series of short articles about Carl Sagan. While we will surely discuss his life and work, most of our writings will be about how Dr. Sagan impacted our lives and perspectives. Simple stuff really — evangelism in the name of Sagan. Testify!

Since well before his death Carl Sagan was adopted as the public face of science in the United States. Whether Americans know him as a scientific educator on Sesame Street, as a figure being lampooned on Saturday Night Live, or from hosting his monolithic series, Cosmos, the name Carl Sagan has become synonymous with science, space, extra terrestrial life, and an enduring optimism in the human spirit.

These Sagan-esque characteristics have been masterfully captured by Jad Abumrad and Robert Krulwich in a segment they produced for their public radio show, Radio Lab. This touching summation of Carl Sagan’s life is told through an interview with his wife, Ann Druyan.

To hear this interview, please listen to the Radio Lab audio clip in the ‘Sounds of Sagan’ player, located in the sidebar. This interview originally aired on May 12, 2006, as part of a Radio Lab episode on Space. If you enjoy this clip I highly recommend checking out the entire Space episode, or any of Radio Lab‘s other shows.